


Should Have Followed Up.

by elvirakitties



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bad Albus Dumbledore, Deaf Character, F/F, F/M, Gen, Good Dursley Family (Harry Potter), Good Harry Potter, Good Severus Snape, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-09-14
Packaged: 2020-01-31 11:41:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18590548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elvirakitties/pseuds/elvirakitties
Summary: Dumbledore never checked on Harry and missed something vital.





	1. Chapter 1

Petunia and Vernon were talking as they were driving Harry to King's Cross. They had already dropped off Dudley earlier. "I don't like this." 

Petunia didn't turn her head to look at her husband. "I don't either. However, if we didn't agree, you know that old fool would have shown up at our house and forced Harry to attend."

Vernon muttered under his breath about wizards and the old fool who run it. "Make sure to give him extra money for emergencies."

"I have. I also wrote out our address and anything else Harry might need." Petunia has also made sure to write out as much as she could about Diagon Alley. They had taken Harry shopping and it had been a crazy day. She had gotten them lost a few times before they found the Leaky Cauldron. They didn't speak until Vernon parked the car. 

Vernon gave Harry a long list of things to be aware of while Petunia fretted about making sure Harry had everything. Vernon and Petunia guided Harry to platform nine. Vernon wasn't about to enter the magical world again so Petunia showed Harry where to enter and how by entering and stepping back out again. She gave him a hug and some more money. "Remember, if you need anything, anything at all, you write. Don't let anyone bother you." 

Harry smiled at her and nodded his acceptance of her words. He gave her a quick hug before he stepped through the barrier. He weaved his way through the crowd of people and made his way onto the train. He wasn't surprised by the crowds on the platform. It was just as crowded as when they visited Diagon Alley. He found a seat, pulled out a book, pulled the hood up over his head, curled into the corner and started to read. While some might think Potions was boring, Harry found it fascinating. It was a lot like chemistry and he loved chemistry. 

He glanced up when the train stopped. He hadn't realized he had spent so long reading. He was a bit surprised to find a red-haired boy sitting in the compartment with a rat on his lap. He gathered his belongings, putting his book into his trunk and hit the shrinking charm button. He put his shrunken trunk in his pocket and followed the group of students to the carriages. He followed the students to where he could see a line of carriages. He felt a bit weird seeing the carriages pulled by winged, skeleton horses but it was the magical world. His Aunt and Uncle warned him about how it was going to be weird. He watched the castle as he got closer. He was amazed by the size of it. He hoped they gave out maps. He followed the same students into Hogwarts. He sat down at the first table and began to look around the huge room.

It had four long tables that ran horizontally with a raised table that went vertical at the opposite end from the huge wooden doors he had entered in. There were floating candles, making the night sky sparkle even brighter. The ceiling made you feel as if you were looking at the sky. He was surprised at how many students there were. His former school wasn't that big. He could see the Professors were sitting at the vertical table and watched an older woman leave the room. He wondered who the weird guy with clown outfit on was.

Harry frowned a bit as a group of students entered the room. He saw the red-hair boy. He realized they must be his classmates and he joined them as they walked by him. He saw the old woman pull out a scroll and start shouting out something. He assumed it was a name as he watched as child after child sit on a stool, a hat put on their head, and when removed, head toward one of the four tables. He faced the woman as she went down the list, he waited for when no student moved forward and got up. He figured she must have called his name. He sat down on the stool and waited. The hat landed on his head but all he could see was darkness. He remained still, waiting. Finally, the hat was removed. He looked up and the old woman was frowning at him. She gave a dismissive wave of her hand. Harry followed the example of the previous students and headed back to where he was originally sitting only to get pulled to another table. He didn't like being pulled but since he had no idea what was going on, he allowed it.

_______________________________________________________________

Harry wasn't sure what was going on but for some reason the next morning, he was pulled toward the table with a lot of students who were all talking among themselves versus the nice table he sat at last night. The red-haired boy kept pulling and pushing him around the halls and into classes. The red-haired boy's mouth never stopped moving but he never faced Harry. The red-haired boy dragged him from class to class. 

Harry was getting annoyed. No one was explaining anything to him. The Professors didn't speak to him and no students did either. He had no idea what he was to do for assignments as he didn't see anything written down. Today was his first potion class and he hated not knowing what he was missing. His Aunt has said to give it time. She explained that during the first week or so staff and students were going to be adjusting to a new schedule, new students, and getting back into being in classes. 

Harry pulled out his map that he had found in a library book. He headed for where it said the potions class was. He made his way, saw a group of students he recognized and knew he was in the right place. He leaned against the wall, following their example, and waited. He only managed to escape the red-haired boy when he went to the library and would read. The boy would follow him and Harry wasn't sure when he left and he didn't care when the boy left either. 

The students started entering the class and he followed them in and found a seat in the back of the room. He pulled out his notebook, pen, and book. He ignored the red-hair boy. He had been annoying him all week. He was always pulling him and the bushy-haired girl had hit him yesterday. He had no idea why but his Uncle always said you don't hit girls. The bushy-haired girl was usually in the library and was always looking at the title of books he was reading. She had even attempted to take one from his pile but the librarian must have done something because she was suddenly next to him and the girl put the book back down. 

He watched a dark-haired man stride to the front of the classroom. Harry was impressed by the flowing cloak. He was trying to figure out what the dark-haired man was saying but he kept turning away. He saw the dark-haired man storming toward him, he jumped when he felt the vibrations rock the table. The man was expecting something but Harry was confused. He looked around for help but no one was doing anything. The man started screaming at him, judging by the way his mouth was moving. Harry started to sign that he didn't know what was being said. Only his hands were grabbed and forced down. The dark-hair turned and stormed away.

Harry had enough. He packed up his stuff, got off of the stool and left the classroom. He walked up to his dorm, gathered up his belongs, packed his trunk, shrunk it, and left. He walked straight out of Hogwarts and headed for the town he had seen from the window. He waited until he was in town and pulled out the emergency letter his aunt had given him. He just needed to find someone willing to help. He founded help in the Three Broomsticks.

_________________________________________________________________________

Vernon and Petunia arrived at the Leaky Cauldron. They entered the pub to find Harry sitting at a table waiting for them with Tom, the man they had met during their last visit. Petunia had to call Vernon at work to have him come home and get her before they left for the Leaky Cauldron. Tom got them some tea as they sat down and Harry began to tell him about his week at Hogwarts.

Petunia and Vernon were furious as they listened to all that happened to their nephew. There was no way they were going to allow Harry to return to Hogwarts. "Harry, you were accepted to Royal School for the Deaf. It's not too late, it's just been a week. I will write to the Headmaster on Monday. I also know Professor Tillis will accept you back in his chemistry program. He said he would." Petunia had been attempting to arrange for Harry to still take his chemistry courses with the Professor during the holidays. 

Harry smiled. He just wanted to go home. It had been a long week. They finished their tea and thanked Tom for helping Harry and asked to pass on their thanks to whoever it was that brought Harry to the Leaky Cauldron. They learned a woman by the name of Mrs. Abbott was the one who helped Harry since she was having tea at the Three Broomsticks. She agreed to take Harry to the Leaky Cauldron.

______________________________________________________________________________

"It's them." Petunia glared out the window at the badly dressed wizard with a wizard in black and a witch in tartan on their doorstep. She was surprised it had taken them so long to figure out that Harry wasn't at Hogwarts. She had expected Dumbledore to make an appearance last night. She wondered if the one in the awful robe was Dumbledore? She really didn't remember meeting him at Lily's wedding. They also didn't remain for long after Vernon had been pranked.

"Took them long enough to realize Harry was missing." Vernon never cared for wizards after meeting Sirius Black but hearing how his nephew was treated made his blood boil. Black had spent the short time talking about pranks and Vernon had been pranked after the ceremony. 

They heard the bell ring on the door again. Petunia got up and headed for the door. She didn't want Harry to see the blinking light and open the door to find wizards on their doorsteps. "You are not welcomed here." She resisted the urge to slam the door.

"Mrs. Dursley, I'm Headmaster Albus Dumbledore and we are here because Harry is missing and we are a bit worried about him. We are hoping he is here." Dumbledore gave her a slight smile. 

"We picked him up yesterday. Thankfully someone in your world actually helped him, finally." Petunia glared. The nerve of the man. She never understood what Lily saw in the man. She thought the man sounded too good to be true and when her sister and husband were killed, she vowed never to trust him.

"I'm afraid I don't understand. You see, we were going to speak to Harry yesterday about his behavior in Professor Snape's class." Dumbledore smiled. "Perhaps we can speak inside." 

Petunia huffed. "Pet, let them in, you know they won't go away otherwise. Look at how many letters they sent when Harry told them no." 

"You're right, they would." Petunia opened the door wider, granting them entrance. Vernon escorted the trio to the sitting room. Petunia headed to the kitchen to get some tea. She needed something stronger than tea. 

"I'm sure we can work everything out." Dumbledore began to explain. "Harry left rather suddenly yesterday. He left during Professor Snape's class." Dumbledore pointed to the dark-haired main. "Professor McGonagall was a bit concerned since she has had heard from the rest of the staff about Harry not doing any of the work in the classes."

"I don't blame him after how he was treated this past week." Vernon snapped, not missing the look of distaste that appeared on the one dressed in black. 

Petunia arrived with tea before anyone else could speak. As she poured Harry came down the stairs. He saw the three sitting there and looked at his aunt. "What are they doing here?" Harry signed. He wasn't expected anyone to show up from Hogwarts. The staff didn't appear to care about the students. 

"We are trying to find out." Petunia signed and spoke at the same time. "They just arrived a few minutes ago. Why don't you go and read your new chemistry book that Professor Tillis sent over? I can go over the past week's assignments with you after they leave."

"I don't want to go back." Harry wasn't going to return to Hogwarts.

Severus Snape looked a bit shocked as Minerva McGonagall gasped. "He's deaf!" Minerva looked at Severus. Everything now made sense. 

"Well, of course, he is. He was born deaf. Dumbledore left him on our doorstep without a by your leave and you didn't know he was deaf? Are you people really that stupid?" Petunia was furious. "Honestly, leaving a walking toddler on a doorstep in the middle of the night was one of the worse things I had ever experienced. Now, add to that is the fact you didn't even know he was deaf. What kind of backward world are you residing in?"

"You left a toddler on their doorstep? A deaf one?" Severus couldn't believe what he was learning. He had believed all the tales Dumbledore had told him. He never expected that Dumbledore would leave his savior on a doorstep in the middle of the night. He saw Vernon signing what was being said as he watched Harry frown. Harry signed something.

"No, it appears they didn't know. How I don't know is beyond me." Petunia knew Mrs. Figg was a squib. She knew the name from Lily when Lily would discuss some secret group led by Dumbledore. The woman was part of the group that got her sister and James killed.

"I believe it's a slight misunderstanding." Dumbledore felt relieved. He now needed to get Harry Potter to agree to return to Hogwarts. Since it was a matter of miscommunications it would be easy. After all, Harry's education was fully paid for.

"He isn't returning." Vernon and Petunia stated at the same time.

"He is already enrolled. His parents signed him when he was born. We can adjust his classes so that he will be able to keep up." Dumbledore was already planning on how he could use Lupin to be the one to assist Harry. Harry being deaf did present some issues but nothing that he was sure couldn't be worked around.

"No, we saw his schedule. You don't have the core classes. Classes like math, English, science, liberal arts, foreign language or even pre-university electives." Vernon saw the courses they taught and wondered how they expected the kids to learn how to make a living after Hogwarts.

Harry moved closer to his aunt, leaning against her chair. "How do you expect a child who never even wrote with a quill to write with one without instructions? How about books or even lessons on how to cut ingredients for potions or even how to write on parchment paper? Just because you might have grown up knowing doesn't mean you should start those new to the magical world off so far behind." Petunia had watched Lily struggle with learning that stuff. Lily had people around her she could understand and it still took her a while to understand what was needed.

"Excuse me, I am wondering why didn't you inform us he was deaf?" Minerva didn't know why Lily or James didn't tell them. Suddenly it dawned on her. "He wasn't born deaf. He is deaf because of the attack." She knew she said it barely above a whisper but everyone heard her.

Dumbledore had his wand out. Harry saw the wand and his magic reacted to a wand being pointed at him. Dumbledore's wand was in Harry's hand. "My dear boy, I wasn't going to harm you." Dumbledore looked at the Elder Wand in Harry Potter's hand. It wouldn't work for him any longer. "Severus, perhaps you could run a medical scan on Harry. Focus on the scar."

"You should ask us before you start casting spells. Now, what scar?" Petunia wondered what the man was talking about. 

"Why the one on his forehead." Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling.

"He doesn't have a scar. If you mean the one you didn't heal when you left him on our doorstep, I took him to Gringotts. They weren't impressed finding a Horcrux in my nephew. I believe they wrote about six years ago, saying that someone named Voldemort was now officially deceased. All seven of his Horcruxes were destroyed." Petunia enjoyed watching Dumbledore's face pale at that news. Vernon and Petunia had spoken at length with the goblins about what a Horcrux was and what they meant. 

Severus, however, smirked. "I told you when my mark disappeared he was gone. Mr. Potter, I offer my apologies for what occurred in my classroom. At the time, I believed you weren't paying attention as I had asked you numerous questions and didn't get a response."

Harry signed something. "He says accepted." Vernon and Petunia waited to see if the man who did the most damage to Harry would apologize. They knew why Harry had been left on their doorstep. 

"I see." Dumbledore was now confused. No Horcruxes, no Voldemort, it couldn't be that simple. The prophecy stated that they must meet and that Harry must vanquish Voldemort. He had to regain control over Harry and get things back in order.

"What do you wish to do about his magical education?" Minerva asked. 

"We will discuss it but Harry won't be attending Hogwarts." Petunia looked at Severus. She knew Severus from when they were children. She wouldn't have recognized him since she hadn't seen him in over twenty years. She didn't look away when Severus returned her stare. She arched a brow and indicated Harry with her eyes. Severus gave a slight nod of his head. 

"I don't want to go there. The red-haired boy always pushing or pulling me and that girl hit me." Harry wasn't about to accept that type of treatment.

Minerva frowned a bit then her lips thinned out. "Yes, I did have a few reports of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger and their treatment of Harry and other students."

"We need to discuss Harry's magical training. It's vital he learns how to control his magic. We can't have him exposing our world due to accidental magic." Dumbledore smiled. "His education is paid for and we can provide him with what he needs to learn."

"No, not until you get some of the basic courses at your school. Honestly, not even having an English class." Vernon rolled his eyes. "It's not about money."

"No, it's about doing what is best for our nephew and making sure he gets the best possible education. Harry has no desire to return and we won't be forcing it." Harry signed something fast and Petunia answered just as fast. The three Hogwarts Professors watched the flying fingers and hands. Harry nodded his agreement and headed upstairs. "He won't be going. I'm sure we can get in touch with the Ministry and find out about hiring a tutor for him regarding learning magic."

"I will happy to provide you with someone who would love the work and would be able to assist Harry. He is also well versed in the muggle world so that won't be an issue." Dumbledore stood up. "I will take care of it as soon as I get back to Hogwarts." Petunia and Vernon exchanged a look. They weren't going to trust anyone Dumbledore suggested. "I do appreciate your attention to the matter. Have a good day." Dumbledore headed for the door. 

Minerva followed behind Dumbledore looking a bit confused. Severus followed but as Dumbledore walked out of the living area, Severus turned and walked back to Petunia and Vernon. "I will return tonight so we can speak." Petunia nodded her acceptance. Severus quickly joined Dumbledore and Minerva.


	2. Chapter 2

Severus just watched as Minerva and Dumbledore fought over what they just learned. Minerva was furious that Dumbledore placed Harry with his muggle relatives, never checked on him, and never did a thing about the Horcrux. At first, Dumbledore had attempted to deny any knowledge but Minerva kept challenging him, bringing up the missing mark on Severus' arm. Minerva was in the middle of a great rant about his policy of ignoring abused children's home life. 

"Their families love them and I'm sure it's only a slight misunderstand." Dumbledore assured her. 

"Of course, they love them but that doesn't mean they are capable of handling a magical child or any child. Abuse isn't about whether they love or don't love their children. Abusers range in their reasons for it happening. You have to stop lying to yourself that only those in Slytherin or from dark families suffer from abuse because they are dark. It happens to a wide range of children." 

"Minerva, surely you don't wish to break apart families?"

Minerva threw up her hands in frustration. "It isn't about breaking them up. It's about getting them help. I'm signing you up for some of the classes the Ministry Child Protective Department has regarding childrearing. You don't get to object, you only get to attend, you will pass it or I'm sure I can find enough staff, former students, and parents who will back me in forcing the issue." When Dumbledore went to debate it, Minerva held up her hand. "No, Albus, either the class willingly or unwillingly, pick one." 

Dumbledore muttered under his breath about pushy women. "Fine, I will attend. As if I don't have enough to do already."

"Your wand?" Minerva had been a bit surprised by Harry's reaction to a wand pointed at him but she didn't blame him. She would have done the same thing.

"Is useless to me now. I will have to use my old wand." Dumbledore was a bit upset about the issue since Harry Potter had two of the Peverell brothers Deathly Hollows items. He would never be able to reclaim the wand unless he dueled Harry. He couldn't have a public one with him unless, yes, he could do that. He just needed to make sure he could provide evidence of it. "I will make arrangements for Remus to tutor Harry. I'm sure he can start this week."

Severus frowned a bit as he watched Dumbledore. Dumbledore had something up his sleeves and it wasn't about having Lupin teach Harry. He did a quick review of his memories as he half-listened to Dumbledore suggest Lupin could even use one of the Potter homes so that he was closer to Harry. He watched Dumbledore's face as Dumbledore spoke about his wand. Dumbledore's face changed as he thought about the Elder Wand. Severus slammed down his anger as he realized what Dumbledore was going to attempt to do. Dumbledore was going to ruin Harry's name. He was also willing to bet it would be leaked out that Harry had a Horcrux inside of him. 

"Albus, you just can't permit Remus to use the Potter homes because you have decided it. It's not your decision." Minerva looked like she was trying to reason with a two-year-old and losing the debate. 

"I'm his magical guardian." Dumbledore figured that made a lot of things easier.

Severus raised a brow. Dumbledore wasn't the boy's magical guardian since the Dursleys withdrew Harry, unless, no, he wouldn't. Would he? Severus almost wanted to kick himself. Of course, he would. Dumbledore wasn't going to alert anyone officially of Harry's withdrawal. The staff and students would know but no one in the Ministry would. He was going to have a long chat with Petunia tonight. Since it was Friday night, he might have to escort them to Gringotts or Dumbledore might become aware of their arrival in Diagon Alley since no muggles would be in their world since Hogwarts official started.

"That doesn't mean much and you know it." Minerva sighed deeply. "You know if you had checked on his, this would have all been avoided."

"I had Arabella there. I am wondering why she never alerted us to the issue?" 

Minerva rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Albus, unless it's a cat, she wouldn't have noticed anything." 

Severus wondered why Dumbledore would put Arabella Figg near Harry as a watcher? He couldn't find a good reason unless he expected-

"I was a bit worried about how the Dursleys reacted when James and Lily got married. They didn't seem to care for magic and she is a squib. She would have fit right in with the other muggles." 

Severus wanted to curse Dumbledore has he remembered James and Lily's wedding reception. He got invited simply because he was an employee at Hogwarts. He didn't attend the ceremony but he went to the reception. Black, Lupin, Pettigrew, and Potter had pranked the Dursleys. Petunia hated magic when he had informed Lily she was a witch. At first, Petunia wanted to learn but Dumbledore wouldn't allow her to attend Hogwarts. After that, she became angry and bitter about magic. Dumbledore expected Petunia to be the same way and her husband to follow Petunia's lead. It would explain why Dumbledore next checked on Harry. He could claim ignorance and the fact he did put a guardian there to watch Harry. Dumbledore would be able to say he did what was expected of him to do. Severus wondered how the man was a Gryffindor as he was pure Slytherin in his political battles and how he had arranged the future of Harry Potter.

"I better go and inform my house that Potter isn't returning. I will also be speaking to Weasley and Granger about their attitude though I doubt it will do any good." Minerva didn't give Dumbledore time to respond before she started toward the door.

"Severus, your thoughts?" Dumbledore waited until Minerva left his office.

"I told you and you ignored me. I can't see how you can keep claiming he is going to return. It will get out." Severus was going to make sure it did. The Ministry had officially declared the Dark Lord deceased when all the Death Eaters in Azkaban had been screaming and crying about the Dark Lord's demise since their marks were gone. Granted the sane ones, inside and outside of Azkaban, were happy and celebrated. The goblins would be able to release the news about how the Dark Lord died without endangering Harry. 

"No, it won't. The Ministry is happy in their beliefs that he won't return. However, we must be vigilant in everything now as someone else could be working on taking control. It is something Lucius might do." 

"Lucius won't want to take charge. It would endanger his family name." Lucius was the one who threw the party when his mark disappeared. Lucius still hated Dumbledore but he didn't want another crazy Dark Lord. He figured the last two were crazy and each Dark Lord appeared to get crazier than the previous one than the one. Lucius didn't want to find out how crazy the next one might be. Severus wondered when Dumbledore would start the Harry is a dark campaign. He couldn't do it now because Minerva was with them during the home visit. Dumbledore would wait until Harry was almost seventeen before attempting it. He would keep up the pressure for a year or two and then arrange to meet Harry for a duel. One where he could rather loudly call Harry a Dark Lord and since Harry wouldn't be able to understand him, Harry wouldn't respond. He would use the fact that Lupin taught Harry, outing Lupin as a dark creature at the same time, claiming Lupin corrupted their savior.

"Maybe so but Voldemort might come back another way or another could replace Voldemort. We will have to keep our eyes on Draco. You must keep me informed if you learn any information regarding anything Lucius might be planning."

"Of course." The not wasn't something he couldn't voice. He wasn't going to inform Dumbledore of anything unless it helped him. "I believe I should go and speak to my snakes." 

"Yes, yes, of course, Severus."

Severus headed for Slytherin House and did a quick update for everyone regarding Potter, explaining exactly who was at fault. He knew every single one would write to their parents. Severus went to his potion lab where he had extra wards and crafted some port-keys for him to use. One for tonight and two for tomorrow. He headed out of Hogwarts and made his way to the apparition spot. 

________________________________________________________________________________

Severus knew it was late when he arrived at the Dursleys but wasn't surprised to find them waiting for him with some tea. Once they were seated, Severus looked at the Dursleys. "I don't have much time to go into all the details tonight but you need to take Harry to Gringotts. He needs to close all the properties he owns. Have the goblins check his vaults, do a full audit. Have them make sure that all of his parents' belongings are either in his vaults or where he knows they are. Have them check for a marriage contract. I have a feeling there might be an illegal one. You also need to make sure you get Dumbledore removed as his magical guardian. Harry won't need one since he isn't attending Hogwarts and you were his guardians before he started Hogwarts. No contracts drafted after his parents' deaths will be legal unless you signed them."

"How did he become his magical guardian? We weren't even asked." Petunia never cared for Dumbledore after Lily's death and she started to review everything that Lily had written or told to her. 

"Any child who doesn't have a magical parent or guardian is automatically assigned one when a professor visits them. It is normally their head of house, however, I believe Dumbledore selected to be Harry's. No one came to visit you about this?" 

"No, after we returned all the letters, someone by the name of Hagrid showed up and said he was taking Harry for his shopping trip. We refused to allow that to happen and informed Hagrid we would take him." 

"Pet had to get forceful with him. He kept insisting that Dumbledore wouldn't like it." Vernon had enjoyed watching his wife face off the half-giant. He didn't even know giants were real until Petunia explained to him about Hogwarts.

"Hagrid is very loyal to Dumbledore. Dumbledore is going to suggest Remus Lupin as Harry's tutor." Severus hated the thought of any child near a werewolf but especially Lupin since the man almost killed him. 

Vernon started shaking his head no as Petunia's eyes widen a bit. "No, that isn't happening. I remember him and I know he is also a werewolf. He is almost as bad as Black." Petunia sighed deeply. "He won't let his go will he?" 

"No, he has some dangerous ideas. I want to stop them. I am going to meet you at Gringotts tomorrow. I will explain why tomorrow. Needless to say, it will be about protecting Harry." He would need to inform the goblins about the wand and cloak as well as this theory regarding Dumbledore. "Now, for tutors, I can recommend a few that Dumbledore won't be happy about but he can't object. They are registered with the Ministry as tutors. Lord Malfoy used two for his son and they are highly recommended. They also are aware of the real muggle world, not the one that the Ministry believes is how muggles act. I recommend we use the goblins as the contract source to keep Dumbledore unaware of my interference." 

"Oh, Harry was hoping you would teach him potions. He showed us how well regarded you are." Petunia stood up and went into the kitchen and returned with a book. It was one of his books. "He was so excited to realize you were going to be his professor. He was crushed by what happened but after you left here today, he was looking forward to it again. He did have a question though, he said the red-haired boy kept pulling him toward the table he was sitting at after he was made to wear a hat." 

"Yes, his sorting. The hat is a sorting hat that declared which house the students will be assigned. It bases it off of personality. Harry was given a choice of Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, or Slytherin. When he didn't respond, the hat declared he could be in all three. It was Dumbledore who removed that option and assigned Harry to Gryffindor."

"I see." Petunia and Vernon exchanged a look. They nodded their heads. "It's about those Horcruxes, isn't it? He is going to try and do something about it and make Harry out to be the bad guy especially after Harry removed the Elder Wand from him today." 

Severus was a bit surprised. He wasn't expecting Petunia to be such a Slytherin with Ravenclaw too. "Yes. How did you know what the wand is called?" 

"Harry has a book on wands. It is mentioned in it and we read about it today. We have always encouraged our boys to read and Harry loves it since he is deaf, he can spend hours reading, getting lost in the world of books. A lot like Lily used to." Petunia smiled a bit at the memory as did Severus. "He has a lot of her in him. Harry is slow to anger but when he does get angry, watch out."

"That was Lily." Severus missed his friend. "I believe during the holidays I will be able to help Harry on his potion work. We don't want him to be overloaded with his muggle schooling as well as his magical studies. Is the school a boarding school?"

"No, since the school serves all ages, they found it easier for those who have parents or relatives nearby to allow them to attend during the day but if a school event is occurring they can also remain." 

"Excellent. I believe after we get some answers tomorrow, including tutors, we can make plans. Ten AM works for me." 

"Ten AM it is." Vernon was looking forward to causing Dumbledore some problems. 

Severus stood up. He reached into his pocket. "I crafted two port-keys for you. The button will take you to Diagon Alley by Gringotts, the quill will return you home. I would have made a round-trip one but that uses more magic and might have alerted Dumbledore I was crafting some illegal port-keys. They will be able to take all three of you. Now, I do believe I need to go before he wonders where I might have gone too." 

"Thank you, Severus, for all your assistance."

"Yes, thank you. My wife and I, we were concerned after Harry returned home. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow." 

"As do I." Severus was going to enjoy ruining Dumbledore's plans.


	3. Chapter 3

Petunia, Vernon, and Harry weren't surprised to find Severus waiting for them at Gringotts. After the greetings, Harry looked at Petunia and signed something, Petunia laughed. "Yes, I am aware." She smiled. "He has a lot of questions for you regarding potions and wanted to know if he could write to you during the school year." 

"He certainly can. I believe we can also arrange for me to assist him with potions during the holidays." Severus looked around. "We best get inside before someone recognizes Harry and reports seeing him to Dumbledore." 

"Yes, we best. The less I have to do with that man the better I feel our family would be." Vernon didn't trust Dumbledore. He hadn't trusted Dumbledore since they found Harry on the doorstep in the morning. He didn't like the man when they first met him and it had gone downhill with each interaction with the magical world. After the death of James and Lily's death, they lost all respect for the man. 

Severus and Petunia waited in line for a teller while Harry and Vernon remained out of sight. Once Petunia and Severus spoke to a teller and made arrangements to speak to the Potter account manager, Vernon and Harry joined them in the account managers area. Harry sat between Petunia and Severus. Vernon was closest to the door. Ironclaw was behind his desk pulling out the Potter files. "I am happy to see you here. I was going to send you a letter regarding Heir Potter." 

"I'm glad we came. We can accomplish what you wish to discuss as well as what we need to accomplish, I hope. We need to make sure that Albus Dumbledore isn't listed as Harry's magical guardian. Severus alerted us that since Harry was listed as attending Hogwarts, Dumbledore might have listed himself as Harry's magical guardian." Petunia was a bit nervous about what Dumbledore was planning after Severus visit last night. "Harry doesn't attend Hogwarts but Dumbledore visited us last night and was very interested in my nephew and didn't want to take no for an answer."

"Yes, and we need to close all of Harry's properties as well as making sure that Dumbledore can't hire anyone without our permission as Harry's tutors, claim anything type of relationship of any type in regards to our nephew." Vernon was aware that James Potter had family money but he had never really investigated beyond making sure that the funds were protected at the time. "Harry mentioned some books regarding him. I want to find out about them."

Ironclaw looked up. "Dumbledore has already filed a claim seeking full custody of Harry. He has asked for a special session to make a decision regarding Harry for the end of the week." 

Petunia looked ready to kill someone. "Isn't he a little old to have custody of a child? He is also the Headmaster and doesn't he have other titles? I remember some listed on the letter we received for Harry." Vernon wanted to hunt Dumbledore down and wrap the man's beard around his neck and kill him. 

"He has listed that the would have the Weasley family willing to adopt him with funds coming from the Potter family vaults to support Harry's care." Ironclaw was a bit surprised He frowned as he continued reading. "There is also a marriage contract between their daughter and Harry signed by Albus Dumbledore dated today which is the same day as the filing for the custody case." Ironclaw pulled out the marriage contract. "The marriage contract is very interesting as it the Headmaster as being the sole guardian of Harry Potter." 

"Very interesting." Severus wondered what happened or why Dumbledore changed his plans from last night. He looked at Petunia. "He must have thought about what happened at your house and realized it would be better to get Harry away from your family before Harry could have a chance to learn to really stand on his own to feet. He would believe that Harry would not stand up to anyone as he is too young to stand up for himself." Severus began to read the marriage contract. 

Petunia was signing what was being said for Harry. Harry looked confused as he signed. *I can stand up for myself. I left Hogwarts on my own.*

Petunia smiled. "Yes, you did."

"How can we stop all of this?" Vernon asked.

"It's really very simple. We can represent you in the session at the Wizenagamot." Ironclaw pulled out some paperwork. "Here is an agreement hiring us to represent you. I am going to send a goblin to your home tomorrow, he will pick up copies of Harry's school records, medical records, he will have a healer from St. Mungos with him as well as one of the agents from the Ministry who works in the Child Protective Agency with him. We will make sure they are not linked to Dumbledore and unaware of who they are visiting until they at your home. They will be able to provide reports to back up your claim about taking care of Harry. We already have the previous records of your visits as well as the medical reports to show the lack of care by Dumbledore and his lack of handling the Horcrux and leaving Harry on the doorstep. The letter is still in our files so we will also provide that in our filings."

"I would also use this marriage contract." Severus handed the contract to Ironclaw. "If you read down to paragraph ten, thirteen, and fourteen, you will the paragraphs very interesting." 

"I hadn't had a chance to read through it as of yet." Ironclaw took the contract and read through the three paragraphs that Severus mentioned while Petunia was writing out what Ironclaw wanted her to gather for the hearing for Harry. Harry was watching her write it out while Severus quietly spoke to Vernon. "These paragraphs will help your case a great deal. Harry could have called for judgment on this contract as soon as he saw the date on it when he reached the age of maturity." 

"I believe he is counting on Harry being so under his control by that time that Harry wouldn't have thought of disobeying him. When you get a chance to read the whole contract you will understand why I say that. The whole contract is about controlling Harry. He lists Harry's career, the classes he is to take, the day he will marry, the number of children, the speaking engagements, where he will live, and even lists that he will remain in charge of Harry's seats until he passes and then Molly Weasley will take charge."

"Seats? What are you talking about? Harry has seats?" 

"Yes, he is heir Potter and actually might have several other seats as well. I was going to suggest an Inheritance test. I wrote a letter to Harry but I received a letter from Dumbledore stating that all correspondences was to be directed to him as he was Harry's magical guardian. I was actually in the process of attempting to obtain a muggle address for you when you arrived here." Ironclaw removed the two letters from the Potter file to show Petunia and Vernon. "I will be adding this to the case file." 

"Should we get one now or wait?" Petunia looked at her husband.

"Would it help us if Harry had more power? Would it remove some from Dumbledore?" Vernon looked at his wife. They didn't want to give Dumbledore more power, they wanted to protect their nephew. They didn't want Harry to return to Hogwarts. Yes, Severus would protect Harry, they felt, but Dumbledore was there and Dumbledore had a lot of power, too much power.

"I believe it would be best if we did the Inheritance Test. However, depending on the test, we can go from there. Harry doesn't have to take any of the heir rings or even any of the Lordship rings if he qualifies for them. Harry might qualify for some as he is the last of a few lines like the Potter line. I am aware he was given numerous gifts which also need to be sorted out." Ironclaw pointed to a stack of boxes on one side of the room. "Those boxes are the files that have a list of vaults that were left to Harry. Dumbledore has never done a thing with any of the vaults. Some of the vaults only have one or two items in them. We also have millions of letters that have never been answered that we also have to handle." 

"Why aren't I surprised that we didn't know about any of this?" Vernon looked at his wife as she signed what was being said.

*The books too? Didn't the books mention that the letters would be answered?*

"Harry is correct, the books did mention that the letters would be answered. Who was responsible for doing that?" Petunia wondered if perhaps they had another way of showing how much Dumbledore had handled another aspect of Harry's life.

"Those contracts weren't in the Potter file as Dumbledore handled the books but let me go and get the contracts and a copy of the books. We have the first editions of each of the books with the contracts." Ironclaw was going to enjoy reviewing these contracts and he was hoping he could remove Dumbledore off of the Potter accounts.


End file.
